While You're Waiting Like A Factory Line
by PageBoy15
Summary: Series of Crack!Drabbles exploring the post-finale fallout for Addison/Naomi, Naomi/Pete, Pete/Violet, Violet/Cooper, Cooper/Sam, and Sam/Addison


_Addison and Naomi_

"You want me to be _okay_ with this?"

"No," Addison says, fearful but not afraid to fight, not anymore. "I just… want you to know. I don't want to hide it from you."

"Fantastic," Naomi snorts, arms crossed over her chest. "That's so goddamn _considerate_."

"I can't even imagine what you're thinking right now Nai, about everything and… of me but," Addison falters. Honesty has never been her strong suit, full, flat-out honesty. She can do it, but it always comes too late, and right about now she's really wishing she gave in and let Sam do this with her. "He's the only thing that makes sense anymore!"

Naomi stares. "That's the most nonsensical thing I've ever heard. How could that possibly be true Addison. He's my _family _–"

"He's my family too," she returns, firmly. That's one point that she'll refuse to back down on. Sam was always her family, and Naomi was too until she left. Maybe it shouldn't have been that big a deal, but it was, and honestly, Addison can't remember the last time Naomi stood up for her (as for Sam, it was this morning at around seven forty five. Someone roughly jostled her back at the crowded coffee bar and he, with a steadying hand on her back, told the guy to watch where he was going. Honestly, Addison almost swooned).

"Just because your family's a mess doesn't mean – "

"Don't," she stands up. "That would be a cruel sentence to finish Nai, and you know it. And I'm sorry, I still love you but I'm in love with Sam. I wanted you to hear that, from me, because I'm not going to hide from anyone anymore."

-o-

_Naomi and Pete _

It only happens once, in the middle of the day. In fact Naomi, after straightening out her suit and wiping the sweat from her brow, had to profusely apologize to a waiting patient and she ushered her into her newly sullied office.

She was upset about Sam and Addison, and he was mad about… whatever it is Pete's always been mad about. Women disappointing him, marriage disappointing him. He's always been an angry person and while fatherhood has taught him to rein it in, given him boundaries as to appropriate emotional dumping grounds, the anger's still there festering, growing, rubbing every new injury raw. Naomi's just sick of being the good guy.

Sex with Pete, dirty, angry sex on her table was unjustifiable, which is probably what made it so good (plus acting out one of Addison's old fantasies with her ex-boyfriends proves to be a wonderful outlet for Naomi's current frustrations).

She's so angry, and although moving to the fourth floor was her choice and not getting back together with Sam was her choice, she feels banished. No one on the fifth floor comes down for consults, it's always the other way around, and she's supposed to be in charge but William keeps leaving (dying) and Fife doesn't listen to her and Sheldon spends all of his time upstairs. The sex, wrong and adulterous as it may have been, was her last connection to her old life (she wants it _back_).

Pete had panted a name into her ear, and while Naomi wasn't sure whose name it was, she was positive it wasn't hers. It's never her.

(Except sometimes it is which makes this whole thing her fault. So take that everyone else.)

-o-

_Pete and Violet _

Violet's progress with Lucas has been somewhat stunted to put it kindly. Their child is getting older, gaining more energy, more speed. Violet wants to hold him in her arms as if he was a newborn, coo lovingly at his curious, confounded face. Lucas wants to crawl and scream and kick and yell out nonsense words, and while Pete finds it fascinating she kind of hates it. Babies are so _loud_.

"Oh good," she says, breathing a sigh of relief as Pete arrives back home bearing groceries and flowers. "You're home."

"I bought dinner, I thought –"

"That you could look after Lucas? I told Cooper… well, we haven't had a night to hang out in a while."

Pete blinks, but relents. He's had so many families. First Meg in residency and Africa, when they were young and idealistic and Pete felt more like himself than any other time in his life. When he smoked and saved people and believed in himself above anything else. Then Anna, then Oceanside, then Addison, and now Violet. He's official again; officially a father and a husband. He still believes in himself, but only himself, no one else. He believes in his son's chance for a better future, but fears that given the family Lucas has, the boy doesn't stand a chance.

He meant it when he proposed. He also kissed Naomi. Go figure.

"Go see Cooper," Pete says, lifting Lucas out of his playpen and ignoring the relief in Violet's eyes. "We'll be here when you get home."

-o-

_Violet and Cooper _

He really, really, really loved her. All those years with Violet. She was his crazy friend and he loved (was in love with) her. If he told Violet about that now, she would say he had been looking for the easy out. He was _transferring_ his need for love onto her. Whatever, he loved her.

Marriage, man, it looks tricky. Violet's miserable, clearly, but she always is. The wedding was nice, but he wants his to be better, except no one's planning it. He gave Charlotte a bridal magazine that it currently being used as a coaster. He has no clue what the first step is, aside from calling his parents.

Violet's at their apartment more and more these days, which is fine because she's friends with Charlotte and they've played Three's Company before but Violet's house had a hell of a lot more room than his place and Charlotte's getting a little peeved.

The thing is, he is too. Violet was supposed to be _better_. And she is but being better just means that you're the best possible version of yourself, not of who you want to be. And Violet doesn't seem to know what she wants.

Cooper knows what he wants. The fairy tale. He's so close to having it too, only this time it's the prince who comes with the step-sister, only she's not evil she's just lonely and in the way and he doesn't have the heart not to let her into the castle.

-o-

_Cooper and Sam _

"Charlotte doesn't want to wear white."

"Addison won't let me touch her in public."

They're drinking. It's their right as men. Men who are in love with crazy, difficult women.

"My _mom_ is going to be there," Cooper moans, lifting his head up just long enough to signal for another round. "Charlotte can't not wear white, they're already pissed she's not converting."

"It's not like I want to grope her in the middle of the lobby."

"I should be happy she's thinking about what to wear. That means she's planning on going through with it, right?"

Sam shrugs, reaching for his wallet. Cooper's anxiety rivals his so this night's on him. Secretly, Sam's thrilled to be able to complain about Addison. "She'll go through with it."

"My parents are going to hate her."

"Yes," Sam says nodding amicably. "But you're happy."

"I'm goddamn delirious. That wasn't sarcasm," Cooper tacks on hurriedly, glancing quickly behind his shoulder as if expecting his fiancée to pop out in a cloud of misconstrued indignation. "I'm happy!" he toast to the bar in general.

"Well," Sam claps a hand on Cooper's wild shoulder, "I'm happy for you." He's warmed to Charlotte, somewhat. They'll never be close, but she's a good person. The way she kept an eye on Maya, that's something he'll always remember. Acceptance, love, friendship, all that seems easier these days. Which is why he's out with Cooper enjoying what Sam has a sneaking suspicious might be an early bachelor party, when he'd really rather be at home right now with the woman who made it seems that way.

Partly, also however, because he loves that she's his to complain about. And come home to.

-o-

_Sam and Addison_

Addison's asleep, kind of, curled up on her couch with a book and a blanket, when she feels a warm arm on her waist and hand on her face. "You smell like beer," she murmurs, a drowsy smile creeping onto her face before she even opens her eyes.

"Cooper spilled the last round on me," he says, pressing his face into her neck, exhaling her scent. "I missed you."

"Sam we had dinner together. It's been like, two hours."

"Feels like three."

"That's romantic," Addison giggles. "Oh, alright, I missed you too."

"I love you." She freezes, her eyes, heavy seconds ago, now wide open and locked with his. "I think you knew that," Sam starts, a little bashful now that the words are out there, "but I wanted to say it. Not just because it's true but… you deserve to hear it. And I want you to know that I think we're going to be great."

She smiles softly, already relaxed back from her initial reaction. "I think we already are."

"Yeah," he agrees, nodding almost boyishly. "We really are."

Sam used to think of them as the bad ones. In both their divorces it had always been pretty clear to the outside world who the victims were. Addison cheated, he moved out. Derek had every right to fall for an intern, Naomi to move away herself in order to find peace. Except he's doesn't think the world works like that anymore. People do what they do the best they know how, no one's keeping count. He loves Addison and Addison loves him, and they work and fit and they make each other happy. So he carries her upstairs and kisses her soundly under the covers and tells her he loves her again and again, because right now loving Addison is what he knows how to do best, and he intends to keeping doing it for a very, very long time.


End file.
